Anyone who knows anything about the stock market will admit that shareholder value, that is to say the price of the share, is inherently unstable and based in large part upon the emotions of investors. Achieved value is only made irreversible when the share is sold. Mr Hosking's proposal would either involve a fantastically complicated system whereby upon share sale a fraction (equal to the number of shares sold over total shares for the bank) of the earnings of the bank for the period which the shares were held was dispersed as an ad hoc bonus to all members of the bank with weighting by rank, department, performance, etc, or (and I suspect this is what he really would like to see) would involve no bonuses being paid ever.

J, London,

So finally someone is addressing the subject of money for nothing for greed and incompetence.Wait for Goldman Sachs remuneration statistics.This bank will make money from the sub prime mess by shorting the market even though they also hold plenty of worthless SIV and CDO paper.Millions of people will suffer before this debacle is over,but they will be paid obscene amounts too laugh at the rest of us.Then the ex executives can run the US federal reserve a la Bernanke, or Treasury secretary a la Paulson and tell the rest of the world how we must all suffer some financial pain.It is sickening, immoral and reality.Never in human history has so much been paid to so few,for so little.We really all must be a little dumb to accept it.

Keith Pirelli, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil

It not just the pay of the banking elite that requires examination. It is the entire global monetary system!

The dollar will cease to be the global reserve currency. It will be the the most earth shattering event in history. The destruction of the dollar will bring down Sterling and the Euro with it.

I sincerely hope the suffering and misery that shall result will be an opportunity to create a monetary system not supported by debt.

Mattsa, Redhill, Surrey, UK

Its simple elite-class arrogance that perpetuates these rifling of large corporate/businesses balance sheets to the detriment of shareholders, customers, and workers. They are simply using a scheme to reallocate other's wealth to themselves under a variety of guises. Recent efforts of shareholders to get a simple yea or ney non-binding opinion vote on ceo pay packages was voted down after vigourous lobbying by business interests. Why people remain so passive in front of this continuing shameless theft is more a testiment to a lack of a free democratic society than anything else. Clearly the entire American media machine pushes the star system of overcompensation whether it be ceo's or sports stars to insane proportions relative to the average worker. Its purpose is to prod the people to work harder, longer, and more aggressively to create yet more wealth. Its how they push worker productivity if nobody has noticed.

Brian Stewart, Los Angeles, usa

Who signs these ludicrous contracts of employment, and why ?....that's what you need to find out.

Ripsnorter, Malaga, Spain

Shareholders ? Just shows your naivete. Buggins turn on the board signing each others employment contracts...wake up man.

Ripsnorter, Malaga, Spain

Why only bankers? All top people need both carrot and stick.

Noel Falconer, COUIZA, France

Finally a journalist who realises exactly what is the root cause of another banking crisis. Intelligent traders will always take the bet 'Heads I win, tails somebody else loses'. And it will continue so long as shareholders' interests are usurped by senior executives and, shall we say, malleable directors.

paul foster, Lausanne, Switzerland

If they mess up and lose millions,oust them with no pay-off.Commen sense I would have thought.

steve, Eure, France

All elites are writing options on the middle class, with elites taking upside down and middle class downside. Immigration is the same behavior. Start with Blair, Brown, and Cameron if you want reform. When they stop all immigration, you will see reform of the type discussed above.

Old Atlantic, Atlantic City, NJ